Since my last run on 12/12 of last year, I have not bothered to get back into any kind of running routine for various reasons (e.g, the recalcitrant tendonitis, lingering month-long upper respiratory infection that I got in Asia, and pure laziness). Since October of last year, I’ve lost a significant amount of muscle mass in the thighs and I’ve been pleasantly surprised that my pants actually fit much looser when I stopped running (vanity rears its ugly head again – no pun intended); and that became a paradoxical motivation to stay away from my running shoes. However, sunny days, 70 degree weather here in Tucson, and seeing a bunch of ‘happy’ runners in their shorts and tanks could not keep me away any longer. I finally hit the pavement again this afternoon.

I must say the stats are humbling. Two miles at 8:50 min/mile is something I would normally turn my nose up to during training season, but that’s what I get for slacking. At this rate, I won’t be ready for any race until mid-fall. A few months ago I was writing J off when the longest he would run was 6 miles, but now the guy is outrunning me, ‘reportedly’ doing 7 miles in 50 minutes (I say ‘reportedly’ because as much as I love and adore my husband, we both know he doesn’t run 7-min miles for that long of a distance 😉 ). So I need to get serious about my running again. No more slacking.